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Kunzite
Kunzite Price level: [ what's this? ] Kunzite: Kunzite is a rare and unusual gemstone ranging from nearly colorless to rich electric pink. It is found in California, Brazil and Afghanistan. It is possible to find very large pieces of kunzite (even up to 40 carats). The larger pieces usually exhibit deeper color – compounding their value. Kunzite gemstones must be protected from the sun, prolonged exposure to bright lights or extreme heat as this will cause the color to fadeThe most valuable kunzite is large (over 20 carats) with rich vibrant saturated pink color and perfect clarity. Most important things: Color: Color is the most important feature of a kunzite is assessing its value. This is both the hue of the stone and the saturation. The most valuable color of kunzite is a warm pink that tends toward orange or peach (vs. purple). Other possible hues are green and yellow. Highly saturated colors are more valuable than pale colors. Clarity: Clarity is the second most important feature that determines the value of a kunzite. Perfectly clear stones are very rare. Perfectly clear large stones are exceptionally rare. The clarity of a kunzite gemstone can make a 500% difference in the price, all other factors being equal. Size: Unlike many gemstones, huge kunzite gems are not outrageously rare. It is possible to find kunzite gems over 50 carats. The average size of a kunzite in jewelry is about 10 carats. Cut: Kunzite gems are unusual in that the skill of the cutter not only affects the sparkle, but the color. The gem has to be oriented correctly so that the strongest color shows. A well cut kunzite will also sparkle endlessly. The facets will be even and symmetric, meeting at points. Fakes and treatments: Kunzite cannot be grown in a lab so there is no synthetic kunzite. However, Kunzite is sometimes imitated. These kunzite imitations range from borderline fraud to downright criminal. Watch for terms like “Kunzite quartz”, “Kunzite Cz” etc. These materials have nothing to do with kunzite gemstones: when you see these kinds of phrases, just replace the word “kunzite” with “pink”. Less reputable dealers will sell everything from pink glass, to pink synthetic spinel or synthetic corundum or man-made quartz and try to pass it off as kunzite. Your surest defense here is to compare clarity and price. If you see a large hot pink stone with perfect clarity being sold as “kunzite” for less than $100, you should be ready to assume it’s fake. Imitations: pink glass and synthetic pink corundum are used to imitate kunzite. It is not possible to synthesize (or “lab create” ) kunzite Spodumene From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (Redirected from Kunzite) "Kunzite" redirects here. For the Sailor Moon character, see Shitennou. Spodumene Walnut Hill Pegmatite Prospect, Huntington, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, USA (Size: 14.2 x 9.2 x 3.0 cm) General Category Silicate mineral, pyroxene Chemical formula lithium aluminium silicate, LiAl(SiO3)2 Crystal symmetry Monoclinic 2/m Unit cell a = 9.46 Å, b = 8.39 Å, c = 5.22 Å; β = 110.17°; Z = 4 Identification Color Highly variable: white, colorless, gray, pink, lilac, violet, yellow and green, may be bicolored; emerald green - hiddenite; lilac - kunzite Crystal habit prismatic, generally flattened and elongated, striated parallel to {100}, commonly massive Crystal system Monoclinic; 2/m Twinning Common on {100} Cleavage Perfect prismatic, two directions {110} ∧ {110} at 87° Fracture Uneven to subconchoidal Tenacity Brittle Mohs scale hardness 6.5 - 7 Luster Vitreous, pearly on cleavage Streak white Specific gravity 3.03-3.23 Optical properties Biaxial (+) Refractive index nα = 1.648 - 1.661 nβ = 1.655 - 1.670 nγ = 1.662 - 1.679 Birefringence δ = 0.014 - 0.018 Pleochroism Strong in kunzite: α-purple, γ-colorless; hiddenite: α-green, γ-colorless 2V angle 54° to 69° Fusibility 3.5 Solubility insoluble Other characteristics Tenebrescence, chatoyancy, kunzite often fluorescent under UVneeded References 1234 Spodumene is a pyroxene mineral consisting of lithium aluminium inosilicate, LiAl(SiO3)2, and is a source of lithium. It occurs as colorless to yellowish, purplish, or lilac kunzite (see below), yellowish-green or emerald-green hiddenite, prismatic crystals, often of great size. Single crystals of 14.3 m (47 ft) in size are reported from the Black Hills of South Dakota, United States.5 The normal low-temperature form α-spodumene is in the monoclinic system whereas the high-temperature β-spodumene crystallizes in the tetragonal system. The normal α-spodumene converts to β-spodumene at temperatures above 900 °C.4 Crystals are typically heavily striated parallel to the principal axis. Crystal faces are often etched and pitted with triangular markings. Contents hide 1 Discovery and occurrence 2 Economic importance 3 Gemstone varieties 3.1 Hiddenite 3.2 Kunzite 4 References 5 See also editDiscovery and occurrence Spodumene was first described in 1800 for an occurrence in the type locality in Utö, Södermanland, Sweden. The name is derived from the Greek spodumenos (σποδυμενος), meaning "burnt to ashes," owing to the opaque, ash-grey appearance of material refined for use in industry.1 Spodumene occurs in lithium-rich granite pegmatites and aplites. Associated minerals include: quartz, albite, petalite, eucryptite, lepidolite and beryl.2 Transparent material has long been used as a gemstone with varieties kunzite and hiddenite noted for their strong pleochroism. Source localities include Afghanistan, Australia, Brazil, Madagascar, Pakistan, Québec in Canada and North Carolina, California in the USA. editEconomic importance Spodumene is an important source of lithium for use in ceramics, mobile phone and automotive batteries, medicine and as a fluxing agent. Lithium is extracted from spodumene by fusing in acid. World production of lithium via spodumene is around 80,000 metric tonnes per annum, primarily from the Greenbushes pegmatite of Western Australia, and some Chinese and Chilean sources. The Talison mine in Greenbushes, Western Australia has an estimated reserve of 13 million tonnes.6 Some think that spodumene will become a less important source of lithium due to the emergence of alkaline brine lake sources in Chile, China and Argentina, which produce lithium chloride directly. Lithium chloride is converted to lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide by reaction with sodium carbonate and calcium hydroxide respectively. But, pegmatite-based projects benefit from being quicker to move into production than brines, which can take 18 months to 3 years, depending on evaporation rates. With pegmatites, once a mill is built, the production of lithium carbonate is only a matter of days. Another key advantage that spodumene has over its more popular brine rivals, is the purity of the lithium carbonate it can produce. While all product used by the battery industry have to grade at least 99.5% lithium carbonate, the make up of that final 0.5% is important. If it contains higher amounts of iron, magnesium or other deleterious materials it is less attractive to end users. An almost colorless kunzite crystal (upper left), a cut pale pink kunzite (upper right) and a greenish hiddenite crystal (below) (unknown scale) editGemstone varieties editHiddenite Hiddenite is a pale emerald green gem variety first reported from Alexander County, North Carolina, U. S. A. editKunzite Kunzite is a pink to lilac colored gemstone, a variety of spodumene with the color coming from minor to trace amounts of manganese. Some (but not all) kunzite used for gemstones has been heated to enhance its color. It is also frequently irradiated to enhance the color. Many kunzites fade when exposed to sunlight. It was discovered in 1902, and was named after George Frederick Kunz, Tiffany & Co's chief jeweler at the time, and a noted mineralogist. It has been found in Brazil, USA, Canada, CIS, Mexico, Sweden, Western Australia, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Kunzite Nouristan editReferences